Even with the start of football season rapidly approaching, The Athletic has seen a slew of departures in recent weeks.
But while most of those moves appeared to be voluntary, that seemingly wasn’t the case as longtime Pittsburgh Steelers writer Mark Kaboly took to X on Monday to announce he’s no longer with The New York Times-owned sports outlet.
“Well, looks like I a just became a free agent,” Kaboly wrote. “If anybody is looking for a veteran Steelers/NFL writer with 22 years of experience, feel free to reach out to me. DMs are open.”
The circumstances surrounding Kaboly’s departure and whether more are coming from The Athletic in the immediate future both remain unclear. According to his profile page, Kaboly hadn’t published a story for The Athletic since July 30 and he hadn’t posted to X since Aug. 1 — an oddity considering the Steelers are currently in the middle of training camp.
Regardless of if Kaboly’s departure is a one-off or if there are more moves to come, The Athletic parting ways with one of its NFL writers so close to the start of the season is certainly noteworthy, especially as the company strives for profitability under The New York Times‘ ownership. Shortly after Kaboly’s post, “Boston” Connor Campbell of The Pat McAfee Show referred to the move as his “stock market crash of 2024,” as the longtime Steelers writer has been a regular guest on the program in recent years.
Kaboly’s announcement comes on the heels of college football writers Ari Wasserman, Max Olson and Nicole Auerbach announcing their own departures from The Athletic. Olson has since announced he’s returning to ESPN, while Wasserman and Auerbach’s destinations have yet to be made public.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.